U.S. stocks rose, after the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index started the year lower for the first time since 2008, as investors waited on a speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke for clues on the econonmy’s strength. The S&P 500 gained 0.1 percent to 1,833.88 at 9:30 a.m. in New York. “The comments are likely to be quite upbeat overall given that the Fed’s tapering process is already underway,� said Michael Every, head of financial-markets research for Asia-Pacific at Rabobank International in Hong Kong. The Fed’s decision to maintain the pace of bond buying during 2013 helped the S&P 500 jump 30 percent last year. Fed officials said they will reduce their monthly purchases of assets to $75 billion from $85 billion starting this month, citing faster-than-estimated economic growth. Reports yesterday indicated applications for U.S. unemployment benefits declined last week to the lowest level in a month and that manufacturing grew in December at the second-fastest pace in more than two years. Carmakers will report monthly sales today and there are no government economic reports scheduled. Bernanke speaks at the American Economic Association’s event in Philadelphia at 2:30 p.m. The chairman, who has led the central bank during its record quantitative-easing program, ends his eight-year tenure on Jan. 31. The S&P 500 (SPX) retreated 0.9 percent yesterday, the most in three weeks. The decline snapped a streak of five straight gains on the first trading session of January. The index had risen an average of almost 2 percent that day since 2009, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The gauge’s 2013 rally was the best annual gain since 1997. It finished the year at an all-time high for the first time since 1999. The Dow average climbed 27 percent in 2013 for its best performance since 1995. Equity returns will slow this year, Wall Street strategists forecast. The S&P 500 will end 2014 at 1,950, according to the average of 20 estimates compiled by Bloomberg. That represents a 5.5 percent gain from the end of 2013. Analysts estimate earnings for S&P 500 companies in the fourth quarter grew by 5.2 percent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Alcoa will unofficially begin the reporting season when it discloses results after the markets close on Jan. 9. To contact the reporters on this story: Trista Kelley in London at tkelley2@bloomberg.net; Callie Bost in New York at cbost2@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Cecile Vannucci at cvannucci1@bloomberg.net

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